1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of amusement devices.
More particularly, the present invention relates to the field of paddle toys.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the United States and around the world, paddle toys have become universally adopted and enjoyed. One ubiquitous toy consists of a paddle to which is tethered a resilient ball. The tether itself is elastic. The object of games played with such toys is to have the ball bounce away from the paddle and then have the ball return to the paddle repeatedly without missing the paddle. In competitive situations, two or more people may play with such paddles. The skill level achieved is determined by counting the number of times in succession that the ball impacts with the paddle without missing it.
At the present state of the art, the user of such paddles must resort to either mentally counting the number of impacts or using some clumsy mechanical device to do so. This increases the likelihood for error and tends to distract the user so that he may never achieve the maximum skill level possible.
A number of inventions have been proposed that deal with the structure and use of paddle toys. For instance improvements offer in: G.M. Young, et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 1,928,583), L.R. Paul et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 2,047,744), F.H. Pierce (U.S. Pat. No. 2,159,817), E. Jefferson (U.S. Pat. No. 2,817,188), L.S. Harris (U.S. Pat. No. 2,978,248), do not contain any counting means. Improved paddles in: D.S. Johnston (U.S. Pat. No. 2,250,802), L Androsiglio (U.S. Pat. No. 2,736.557), and G. Lerner et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 3,358,999) offer mechanical counters which are far bulkier and far more difficult to use than the electronic display of the instant invention. T. Heftler et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,222,563) provides a paddle that electronically displays impact to a paddle, but does not develop the toy into a paddle device with tethered ball.